How To Maintain Cyber Security When Employees Are Working Remotely

If you’ve recently made the switch to remote work or are allowing employees to work from home at your company, you may be wondering how you can maintain your cyber security. In this blog from West County Computers, we’ll take a look at a few simple methods for locking down your business data while your employees work remotely.

Block And/Or Discourage The Use Of Unsecured Or Public Networks

Employees should be strongly discouraged from using public or unsecured networks at coffee shops and in other public areas. If you supply your employees with work laptops, it’s possible to set them up to disallow connections to these networks. This will help eliminate a major security risk.

Ensure Your Employees Use A VPN

If you can’t stop your employees from using unsecured or public networks, a VPN is the next best thing. VPNs (virtual private networks) create an encrypted “tunnel” through which web traffic is sent. This means that even if someone had access to the network traffic an employee was sending, they would not be able to read or understand any of it. It’s best to mandate the use of a VPN whenever your employees are working remotely, and are not on their own, secured home Wi-Fi network.

Ensure Sensitive Data Is Encrypted

If your employees are working remotely, there’s a larger risk that their laptop, flash drives, and other items may be stolen – from a coffee shop or an airport, for example. For this reason, it’s very important to lock down and encrypt the contents of any electronic device that’s being used by your employees.

Remind Employees About The Dangers Of Phishing

Phishing – the use of misleading emails to get login credentials or other information from employees – can happen at any time, even when working remotely. Phishing accounts for up to 90% of data breaches, so make sure your employees are empowered with the knowledge and training they need to avoid revealing sensitive corporate data.

Follow These Tips – Keep Your Data Safe Even When Working Remotely

With the proper IT tools and best practices, it’s easy to keep your data safe and secure, even when you and your employees are working remotely. Need more tips, or help securing your IT systems as you make the transition to remote work? Contact West County Computers today to schedule a consultation with one of our tech experts.